Space Buffs Worldwide Dismayed at Launch Delay

Space buffs from Tokyo to Indianapolis were disappointed and frustrated over the delay in launching space shuttle Discovery amid concerns over a faulty fuel-tank sensor.

The mission was put off at least until Saturday.

“Again?” Emi Tanaka, 26, said in dismay after trekking to a giant screen in downtown Tokyo with three other friends after a late night of work. The group had hopes of watching the liftoff around dawn, Tokyo time. A flight targeted for late May had earlier been set back by two months.

The launch had been set for live screening at the busy plaza in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district and on local TV networks.

The inclusion of Japanese astronaut and local celebrity Soichi Noguchi in the shuttle crew of seven had boosted interest for this mission in Japan.

In the United States, NASA had electronically linked with at least six museums to show the launch live on giant screens. The space agency invited teachers and schoolchildren — many from disadvantaged inner-city schools — to the Kennedy Space Center. For weeks, NASA has been promoting what the agency calls its “Return to Flight” outreach program.

“We’re encouraging these students to pursue math and science careers,” said NASA’s chief education officer Adena Williams Loston. “They will be the Mars walkers.”

Discovery’s launch would mark the first shuttle flight since the Columbia tragedy 2 1/2 years ago, when the spacecraft disintegrated during its rapid descent toward Cape Canaveral, Fla., killing all seven astronauts aboard.

After the scrub, space agency officials and VIPs tried, but failed to hide their disappointment.

“All I can say is shucks,” deputy shuttle program manager Wayne Hale said.